Moradyn®- MS, a nutraceutical approach to prevent metabolic syndrome and its complaiants
Moradyn®- MS is an anthocyanin-riched extract derived from the homonymous pigmented corn varieties which has been recently demonstrated effective in managing glucose blood uptake and its metabolism in vitro1, thus represent an attractive solution for the prevention of metabolic syndrome through a “nutraceutical” approach.
Hyperglycemia and dicarbonyl stress are disfunction states directly related to a shift towards unhealthy aging, metabolic disorders, vascular disfunction up to the development of diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases2-3.
Elevated glucose and dicarbonyl-derived adducts (e. g. advanced glycation and products - AGEs) level in blood and tissues lead to severe detoxifying systems impairment, enhance inflammaging and promote a progressive loss of the physiological and structural function of proteins and lipids.
High glucose concentration, moreover, enhanced the formation of superoxide (O2∙−) radicals and H2O2 but decreased antioxidant enzymes, resulting in the excess oxidative stress reflected by an elevation of lipid peroxidation product or Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels2.
Overall, these “glycemia-induced” alterations mainly affect the retinal microvasculature and cause critical damages inducing macular edema formation and retinopathy: one of the major Type 2 diabetes compliant and the primary cause of blindness in adults3.
Following the state of the art the purple corn fruits, thanks to their high anthocyanins content, can be effective in reducing glucose absorption, ameliorating insulin resistance, and improving lipid profile in high-fat diet treated rats2. These trends have been further confirmed by in vitro tests carried out on Moradyn®-MS aimed to register its hypoglycemic and antiglycative capacities1.
Moradyn®-MS hypoglycemic activity was tested at different concentrations and compared with acarbose, one of the most known α-glucosidase inhibitors. Results indicated that Moradyn® always exert higher inhibitory activity against α-glucosidase, confirming its potential effectiveness in regulating glucose absorption. Moradyn®-MS exerted also a strong antiglycative capacity, showing a 93% inhibitory activity already at the lowest concentration tested1.
The inhibitory activity registered for this purple corn extract were correlated to the synergistic action of the polyphenols present rather than to the anthocyanins, showing the importance of preserving natural biodiversity and richness1.
Moradyn®-MS effectiveness was further assessed by cell-based experiments using HUVEC cells grow under simulated hyperglycemia conditions. Results indicated that Moradyn® exerts a cytoprotective activity by inhibiting glucose-toxic effect and restoring cell-viability; confirming its potential role in managing glucose metabolism and in preventing the main metabolic syndrome complaints.
REFERENCES
[1] Ferron, L. et al. A New Italian Purple Corn Variety (Moradyn) Byproduct Extract: Antiglycative and Hypoglycemic In Vitro Activities and Preliminary Bioaccessibility Studies. Molecules (2020) 25, 1958-1979.
[2] Oliveira, H. et al. Anthocyanins as Antidiabetic Agents—In Vitro and In Silico Approaches of Preventive and Therapeutic Effects. Molecules (2020) 25, 3813-3833.
[3] Nigro, C. et al. Dicarbonyl Stress at the Crossroads of Healthy and Unhealthy Aging. Cells (2019) 8, 749-776.